ANKARA – Turkey warned Iran “in a frank and friendly manner” against blaming Ankara for violence in Syria, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Wednesday, a day after holding talks with his Iranian counterpart.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi flew to neighboring Turkey on Tuesday seeking to mend a relationship sorely strained by the Syrian uprising and to secure Turkish help for 48 Iranians kidnapped in Syria on Saturday.

Turkey was incensed by comments this week by Iran’s top general Hassan Firouzabadi, in which he blamed Turkey for the bloodshed in Syria and accused Ankara, alongside Saudi Arabia and Qatar, of helping the “war-raging goals of America.”

“Such statements have the potential to harm Iran as well,” Davutoglu told reporters at Ankara airport before departing on a visit to Myanmar.